The 2024 National Trade Estimate Report on Foreign Trade Barriers (NTE Report), recently released by US trade representative Katherine Tai, identifies significant foreign trade barriers, including obstacles to US agricultural exports, lack of uniformity in the European Union (EU), non-market policies and practices, and data policies furthering state intrusion.
Cross-cutting barriers that impact US agricultural trade are highlighted in the report. These include onerous and opaque facility registration requirements and sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) measures that are either applied excessively to address SPS issues or are not supported by enough scientific evidence.
US stakeholders in the EU still have difficulties since different member states have different policies or procedures to follow. Customs, labeling, agricultural biotechnology, packaging and packaging waste, government procurement, investment, and the protection and enforcement of intellectual property are among the areas of concern, according to a USTR announcement.
According to the report, China’s state-led, non-market approach to trade and the economy continues to influence the industrial policies the nation adopts and gives Chinese businesses unfair competitive advantages.
This covers significant financial assistance, regulatory and other privileges, as well as official and informal policies and practices meant to disadvantage international rivals. According to the research, this behavior is seriously distorting and disrupting markets, which has resulted in severe and ongoing surplus capacity.
The research stated that China is establishing and chasing production and market share targets in a number of industrial sectors, including manufacturing, that can only be met by non-market means.
The United States has identified problematic data policies in a number of nations, including China and Russia. The United States is aware that governments can use data localization policies to monitor their citizens, impede labor rights, and compromise civil and political liberties in other ways.
